2019 Archives

We are pleased to announce that Nicholas Silbaugh has been promoted into the role of Superintendent. Nick originally joined our team in 2015 as a Project Engineer, working on the Raven Terrace (Yesler) Project. In early 2018, Nick moved into an Assistant Superintendent role after successfully completing the Mercy Othello Plaza Project. Nick is currently working on the final stages of the Ainsworth & Dunn Project. Please join me in congratulating Nick on his latest accomplishment and wishing him future success!

More affordable housing is on the rise thanks to REACH Community Development on their Argyle Street Apartments! Our WALSH team of Kent Usher, Mario Hernandez, Caitlin B. Kelley, Laura Voss and Scott Roscoe is excited to work with MWA Architects, RDF Builders and our dedicated trade partners on this exciting project. Thanks to Josh Kulla with the Daily Journal of Commerce for the images and article. Construction is under way, with crews tackling structural concrete work and sewer lines. A dry well 55-foot deep was excavated this week, with a crew of pile drivers from Vancouver, Washington-based Pacific Foundation. The 189-unit complex is at the corner of Argyle Street and Interstate Avenue – in the Kenton neighborhood. The two four-story structures will provide a total of 152,000 SF of floor area. The project will serve low-income families and working adults and longtime residents of North or Northeast Portland will have priority through the Portland Housing Bureau’s N/NE Neighborhood Housing Strategy. This will be an exciting project to watch! Thanks to all the crews involved bringing this community-building project to fruition for our local families. #walshbuildscommunity #walshaffordable #endhomelessness #reachcdc #letsbuildsomethinglasting #walshcofamily

A great team on site as renovations begin on the historic Frye building for Low Income Housing Institute! This spring marks the 108th anniversary of the grand opening of George and Louisa Frye’s eleven-story, steel-frame Frye Hotel. Now known as “The Frye”, the building provides 234 affordable apartments and is currently set to undergo full renovations. Exterior renovations include updating brick façade to modern seismic requirements, brick repoint, refurbishing historical windows, and replacing fiberglass windows. Interior work includes the replacement of plumbing in unit bathrooms and kitchens, replacement of unit and common area flooring, repainting all units and common areas, and modern upgrades to residential units (new stainless-steel countertops and appliances). Design is by Environmental Works. Our Walsh team includes Jack Kuester, Ron Ward, BJ Kuester, Tom Hardin, Jeremiah Phillips, Ujwal Joshi, Cindie Banta and RDF crew: Antione Manning, Demetrius Hunt, Jose Castro Silva, Steven Strauss, Brian Penn, Daniel Moery, Ian Daniel, Tyron Pitcher, Isaiah Dela Cruz, and Tom Speed. #lowincomehousinginstitute #walshrestore #walshaffordable #projectswithpurpose #letsbuildsomethinglasting #buildingvalue #walshhousing #endhomelessness

Congratulations on the Grand Opening of Cornelius Place and Cornelius Public Library! And to the project team of BRIDGE Housing, Bienestar, City of Cornelius, Oregon-Local Government and Scott | Edwards Architecture for their years of dedication to this community-building project. Huge thanks to our WALSH team of Dean Lindstrom, Bennett Barnwell, Hunter Rains, Jill Mathews and Nolan Knox! The multi-use Cornelius Place development houses the expanded Cornelius Public Library and 45 affordable apartments for adults age 55 and older. The new library will provide a variety of services to support children, families, and seniors, including pre-reading and early education programs, student success programs, and adult education. Attendees were offered tours of the new 13,650-square-foot library, as well as the senior and low-income housing on the second and third floors. Excellent work by all! #walshbuildscommunity #walshaffordablehousing #walshhousing #letsbuildsomethinglasting #walshbuildsvalue #buildingvalue #corneliusplace #corneliuspubliclibrary #walshcofamily

A historic site in Seattle made history again as Liberty Bank Building kicked off its Grand Opening on Saturday! The community-led project is a partnership of Capitol Hill Housing, Africatown-Central District, Byrd Barr Place and the Black Community Impact Alliance. LBB celebrates African-American history and commemorates the legacy of Liberty Bank. Opening in 1968 as the first Black-owned PNW bank, Liberty Bank served the community for 20 years providing essential financial services in response to redlining and disinvestment. LBB is filled with and embraced by artwork inspired by the history of Central Seattle, created by a collaboration of community organizations and local artists. It includes historic pieces reclaimed from the building’s namesake and a radiant mural reaching five stories above the courtyard entrance. Liberty Bank Building has 115 affordable units and will make 2,700 sf of affordable retail space available to neighborhood small businesses. Congratulations to our construction partners Capitol Hill Housing, Mithun, and our subcontractors for their great efforts and teamwork! Local WMBE firms contributed more than 30% of the subcontracting work on the project. The WALSH team includes Sandi Tovias, Matthew Forsythe, Jason Wilson, Anthony Sherman, Karen Moon, Joe Geise and Sharon Libby; the fantastic RDF crews (layout, earthwork, concrete, WRB, metals, finishes, and labor), were led by Ryan Mertes, Jeremy Winter, Justin Nieto, Tommy Koviak, Jeromy Wood and Shannon Morey. Thank you all for your hard work and dedication on this beautiful residential building! Liberty Bank Building has 115 affordable units and will make 2,700 sf of affordable retail space available to neighborhood small businesses. Congratulations to our construction partners Capitol Hill Housing, Mithun, and our subcontractors for their great efforts and teamwork! Local WMBE firms contributed more than 30% of the subcontracting work on the project.The WALSH team includes Sandi Tovias, Matthew Forsythe, Jason Wilson, Anthony Sherman, Karen Moon, Joe Geise and Sharon Libby; the fantastic RDF crews (layout, earthwork, concrete, WRB, metals, finishes, and labor), were led by Ryan Mertes, Jeremy Winter, Justin Nieto, Tommy Koviak, Jeromy Wood and Shannon Morey. Thank you all for your hard work and dedication on this beautiful residential building! #libertybankbuilding #walshbuildscommunity #walshaffordable #letsbuildsomethinglasting #buildingvalue

Work continues smoothly on this busy renovation project. The Golden Pines team completed seismic upgrades last week and siding has begun. The RDF Envelope crew has installed 95% of the windows, and continues to detail and document the liquid applied WRB installation (blue material visible in photo). Finishes are being installed in the new elevator addition on the building’s north side, including newly framed elevator lobbies and storefront entrance. A new concrete walkway at the north entrance will be poured this week. Interior unit and common area renovations are complete on Levels 3 and 4, and we are actively working on unit and common area renovations on the first half of Level 2. New aluminum decks will be delivered and installed this month. Look for big changes at the south entry in the coming weeks, with a newly framed entrance, elevator modernization, and common area improvements to resident community gathering spaces! Many thanks for the great team effort by our RDF trades: metals, WRB/envelope, earthwork, concrete, carpenters and laborers. Fantastic work by our many subcontractor partners, and the Renton Housing Authority ownership team – we love working with you! Thanks to Allan Gamet for the photo of Desirae Hobbs and Juanita McLaughlin on site! Our wonderful WALSH team working out at the Golden Cedars renovations includes Ron Ward, Greg Gagnon, BJ Kuester, Tom Spicer, Tom Anderton, Matt Offe, Barbara Fearon, Cindie Banta, and Sharon Libby. #walshbuildscommunity #walshrestore #womeninconstructionweek #walshaffordable #letsbuildsomethinglasting #buildingvalue

Superintendent Duane Stearns (over 19+ years with WALSH) and Assistant Superintendent Osmani Gonzalez (over 22+ years at WALSH) hard at work at the Blackburn Center project for Central City Concern. The two-story health care facility will serve 3,000 people each year with recovery and mental health services, as well as targeted primary care services. The building’s residential portion will offer: 80 transitional, single-room units for low-income individuals; 51 transitional, “respite care” units; 34 permanent studios and 10 “palliative care” units. Blackburn Building is the third of three buildings in the “Housing is Health” initiative, a pioneering commitment from local hospitals and health organizations to supportive, affordable housing. Thanks to the WALSH and RDF teams for all their hard work on this innovative health and housing project! #walshhealthcare #walshbuildscommunity #letsbuildsomethinglasting #walshaffordable #buildingvalue #walshcofamily #walshhealthandhousing

WALSH Portland is excited to announce the newest addition to our #walshcofamily – Courtney Mitchell is joining us as a Project Engineer! She is coming to us from the Windy City, and has been in the construction industry for ten years. Starting as an apprentice carpenter, she diligently worked her way into the responsibilities of Project Manager for a small construction firm in Chicago. She gained a passion for construction through working side by side with her brother and the community. Courtney is looking forward to exploring Portland more with her wife and their dog as they continue to get settled in the Pacific Northwest. We are so excited they both made the move to begin their next chapter in Oregon and at WALSH. Please join us in giving her a warm welcome! #walshbuildscareers #teamwalshconstruction #letsbuildsomethinglasting #buildingvalue